My Guardian
by LyriaBlackFrost
Summary: Every time Jack Frost looked at that little girl with long brown hair, he couldn't help but wonder: why does she look so sad? - A short story about Jack and his little sister.
1. Part I - Don't Cry

A/N: This is a short story - 2 chapters and an extra - about Jack and his little sister.

Also, my english is far from perfect, so please, don't expect something like "perfect grammar" from me.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy it.

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"I wonder why she looks so sad..." I whispered to myself, as I watched that little girl with long brown hair.

All the other kids laughed cheerfully, amusing themselves while building a snow man, playing tag, or throwing snowballs at each other. But she was still there, sitting in a wooden bench, with her head down.

"Why don't you go play with the others?" I asked, looking into her brown eyes, which didn't look back at me "Look… Everyone is having fun." I proceeded, pointing at the other children with my staff "Why don't you try doing the same?"

As expected, she didn't answer. I knew it was useless to try to talk to someone who couldn't even see, nor hear me. Still, I couldn't just ignore it: she looked so sad, and so lonely… And I didn't want her to feel that way.

The other kids also seemed to realize that, and soon, a girl with blond hair, who seemed to be just a little older, approached, almost walking through me.

"Come play with us!" she asked, with a smile.

Behind the blond girl, the kids waved, as if trying to encourage the girl with brown eyes to accept that request.

"See?" – I asked, looking at her once again "Everyone wants you to have fun too! Come on… It'll be cool!"

But she only shook her head in response.

"No…" she said in a low voice "I… I don't want to play now…"

Saying this, she got up, moving away silently with her head down.

"What's wrong with her?" I asked, following the girl with my eyes.

I don't know the reason, but seeing this girl so sad made me sad too. I wanted so much to see her having fun with the others, that I even made the snow fall earlier that day. All children seemed satisfied with this, but she didn't even show a little smile.

"She's still sad, isn't she?" the question came from a dark-haired boy, and caught my attention.

"Yes." Answered the blond girl, in a low voice "Since her brother drowned in the lake, she doesn't smile anymore, nor wants to play with us."

"Her brother…?" I repeated, a little surprised.

"They were always playing together, right?" asked a younger girl "She must be feeling so lonely…"

The children were silent. So, that was the reason why she looked sad…

At that same moment, I went after the girl, and soon found her sitting on the floor, hugging her knees. She wasn't too far, but had distanced enough from the village, so no one would see her. I approached carefully, and felt a deep pain in my chest when I realized she was crying,

"Hey, don't cry…" I said, lowering myself in front of her.

I tried to dry her tears, but my hands went right through her face. I didn't have a family, so I didn't know how it felt to lose a brother, but I comprehended that was something too much painful, specially for a child.

"I have an idea!" I said, with a grin "How about me being you brother for today? We can play together, as you always did!"

But she didn't hear what I said, and kept crying. The smile on my face faded slowly, and I lowered my eyes. I wanted to help her, more than anything, but didn't know how.

"If only you could hear me…" I muttered, squeezing the staff in my hand "All I want is to see your smile."

My eyes watched the snow covered ground. I sighed briefly and touched the place near the girl's feet, with the tip of my staff. The snow in that place started to move, and spiraled upwards, hardening in the shape of a flower.

"Do you like flowers?" I asked "It must be hard to see them grow in this cold… But I can do it. Look…

Around that first ice flower, I made others ones, a little smaller, appear. The girl must have noticed that something around her was different, because in the next moment, she lifted her face.

"So, what do you think?" I asked her.

Upon noticing those little flowers rising around her feet, the girl's eyes widened.

"Wha… What's happening…?" she muttered.

"They're flowers… Ice flowers." I added "Made specially for you by Jack Frost. Did you like them?"

She looked around, trying to understand what was happening. Without finding any answer, she stood up, the eyes still fixed on the flowers…

And ran.

"Hey!" I yelled, caught by surprise by that reaction "Where are you going? Wait!"

I went after her. For such a little girl, she ran really fast.

"I guess you don't like flowers… Understood." I said, flying by her side "So, what about some little ice-squirrels next time? Or do you like little ice-birds?

She seemed really terrified. Yeah, I guess that wasn't such a good idea…

I looked around, trying to find some way to communicate with her, or at least to calm her down.

The solution came quickly: we were approaching a frozen lake.

And which kid in the world didn't like ice skating?

Using my power, I created two blades of ice under the girl's shoes, and made the floor in front of her freeze, making her slide toward the lake. She slipped, and almost fell, but I controlled the ice so she could regain her balance, and soon enough, we were in the middle of that lake. She slid a few feet, and I looked at her face, hoping to see at least a faint smile.

But instead, now she looked even more terrified than before. Worse, she seemed about to cry again.

Oh, of course, her brother had drowned in a lake... Bringing her for skating should have caused her to remember bad things. I slapped my forehead with my hand, feeling like a complete idiot: I wanted to make her happy, but I ended up only making everything worse.

Or maybe... It was better that way.

"Your brother wouldn't want to see you sad like that." I told her, in a low tone "And, as for today I'm your brother too, I'll help you to forget all the bad things that happened."

Yes, I was willing to make all those painful memories that she had turn into happy memories.

Gently, I made her slide a bit more on the ice. As a result, she closed her eyes, and gave a muffled yelp.

"Calm down..." I said in a low voice "It's okay."

"B-brother..." she whimpered "I'm scared..."

"Don't be scared, I won't let you fall."

Slowly, I made her slide around the lake. Upon realizing something strange was going on, she opened her eyes, and then, furrowed her brow slightly.

"Am I... Moving alone...?" she asked herself, astonished.

"Not alone..." I answered "I'm here with you."

Saying that, I made her go a little faster. She seemed frightened at first, but then, her expression became one of pure admiration.

"This... Is amazing!" she said, fascinated.

"Isn't it?" I couldn't keep a smile from arising on my face when I heard that "But it can be even better."

Carefully, I rotated the girl around herself, and then, I guided her through zigzag lines across the lake changing the trajectory now and then to surprise her. Soon, my little "sister"was skating without me moving her, but still I helped, guiding and preventing her from losing balance, or going to an area with very thin ice. Also, to please her, I created some fine ice crystals, making them arise wherever she passed, and she seemed to be charmed by them, as if she had never seen anything more beautiful in her life.

And, for the first time, I saw her smile: the most beautiful smile I've ever seen. Soon, I was laughing with her, enjoying myself with her. For some reason, having that little girl by my side seemed so... Right... So amazing...

I've even come to forget that we weren't true brothers, actually...

I've even come to forget that I was "invisible".

We just kept laughing together for a long time, forgetting all of our troubles and sorrows, as if there were nothing sad nor wrong in the world, just fun and happy moments like that.

She rapidly slid across the ice, and suddenly lost her balance. Quickly, I tried to keep her standing, but she didn't need my help: briefly turning her body to the side, she managed to stand firm, sliding backwards on the ice for a while, and then, turning her body to the other side slowing down until she stopped.

"That was awesome!" I said, truly impressed, as I approached the girl.

"That was so cool!" she said, smiling widely.

"I know!" I replied, excited "We need to do it again!"

Still smiling, she looked back at me.

"Ja..."

My heart seemed to skip a beat: was she calling me by my name?

Could she hear me?

Could she see me?

But my joy didn't last more then a second: when those brown eyes looked at me, what they saw wasn't "Jack Frost". They saw through me, as if I wasn't there.

The smile on the girl's face slowly faded, and she looked down, looking painfully sad once again.

Without saying anything, the little girl began to walk away, to the edge of the lake. The ice blades on her shoes fell apart before I knew it, and soon it seemed that all that happy moments we shared just some minutes ago were nothing but a distant dream.

"Hey, wait!" I called her, but she couldn't hear me "Don't leave yet! We can have more fun if you..."

I tried to hold her hand, but mine just ended up going through hers.

I no longer was her brother, just "Jack Frost".

I was invisible once again.

But the worst of all is that, once again, she had stopped smiling.


	2. Part II - I Miss You

I couldn't sleep.

I tried to think of good things, to hum quietly beautiful songs, and even to remember happy moments...

But every time my eyes saw that empty bed across the room, my heart would hurt more than anything, and soon, I started to cry.

Why isn't Jack here with me?

Why did he save me that day?

If I knew this would happen, I would've never let him save me...

"Jack..." I muttered, closing my eyes. I felt the tears coming, and I didn't try to hold them back.

That night was being worse than any other, and the others had already been pretty bad: I always had nightmares where I saw my brother disappearing in the darkness of the lake. I would try to reach him, but my arms were too short. I would try calling his name, but Jack wouldn't answer me. I would even try to dive after him, but even when I was inside the lake, I couldn't find him among all that darkness, and soon would wake up with that horrible suffocating sensation, like I was really drowning.

But that night, I couldn't even get to sleep.

And all because today, while I was at the lake, I believed that my brother was there, beside me. I imagined him sliding by my side, holding me by the shoulders whenever I got off balance, and even thought I had heard him laughing more than once.

But Jack wasn't there with me.

Jack's not here anymore.

And I'll never see my brother again.

Now, the tears wouldn't stop anymore. I wish I could see him, even if it was only one more time... I just wanted to talk to him, to at least thank him for saving my life...

Or to at least tell him how important he was to me.

I looked one last time to that empty bed, and then closed my eyes again. Suddenly, I remembered that, when I was younger, every time I had a nightmare and woke up frightened, Jack would put his hand gently on my head, saying everything was fine. And then, he would hold my hand until I fell sleep again.

Jack... How I wish you were here by my side when I woke up from this nightmare.

Cold...

I felt a cold wind on my face, and it woke me up.

Did I forget to close the window again?

That's alright... Jack should go close it in a bit...

No... That's right... He's no longer here.

I'm alone.

I'm alone, and it hurts.

It hurts so much, I can't even stop crying.

Jack... I miss you.

_"Hey..."_

Jack? I thought I heard his voice...

Oh, I'm dreaming about him again, ain't I...?

_"Why are you always so sad?"_

Because you're no longer here with me...

_"What else do I need to do to make you smile?"_

I felt something cold on my face. First on my cheek, and then, on my forehead. I had the feeling that someone had dried my tears, but it must be just my imagination...

_"I don't like to see my little sister sad."_

Jack...?

I slowly opened my eyes. Jack was crouching beside me, looking at me as if he was worried. But I knew it was all just a dream: my brother's hair was white, as white as snow, and his eyes were as blue as the morning sky, quite different from the brown eyes that I knew so well. But his face was the same as before... The only thing missing was that wide and lovely smile. Is Jack sad too?

I don't like it... I don't like to see my brother sad. If that wasn't a dream, I would tickle him until he could no longer stop laughing, and then would give him the strongest hug ever, until he could barely breathe.

Is it possible to hug a dream? Might be worth a try...

But before I could do anything, I was awakened from my thoughts by my brother's low voice.

_"Don't cry anymore, okay?"_

He squeezed gently my nose, and I had the strange sensation of being frozen. Were his hands as cold as this before? I can't remember...

Jack stood up, heading towards the window, going up there as if about to jump to the outside.

Was he leaving?

No, I didn't want him to go away!

"Jack!" I called him, getting out of my bed as fast as I could "JACK!"

I ran to the window but, as expected, my brother wasn't there.

"Jack..."

My chest ached more than ever: I felt as if I had just lost my brother for the second time.

"Jack, don't leave me..."

Silence.

"Don't leave me again..."

Once again, I felt that strong urge to cry. I closed my eyes, holding the edge of the window with my hands.

Cold.

I opened my eyes, and noticed that the whole window was outlined by beautiful ice crystals. I furrowed my brow, a little confused: that had never happened before, not even in the coldest days of the year.

It was then that I remembered...

I remembered those mysterious ice flowers that appeared before my feet...

That strange magic that made me slide alone on the lake...

Those ice crystals, which adorned everything around me...

That well known laugh, that I loved so much.

Jack, he was with me.

He had been with me all along.

He did all that... For me.

"Brother... I made you worry, didn't I?" I said in a low voice, running my fingers over the frozen wood. There was no doubt: it hadn't been a dream "I'm sorry... I promise not to cry anymore."

Yes, I was determined: If I kept crying, Jack would be worried, but if I keep smiling from now on, he won't have a reason to worry, and perhaps, will come to smile too, just like before.

And that, only that, is everything I want the most.

"Thank you, Jack..." I said quietly, hoping that, somehow, he would be able to hear me "Thank you for being my brother."

I smiled lightly, holding back my tears. I promised him I wouldn't cry anymore, and I wanted to keep my promise.

"Thank you, Jack, for being my guardian."


	3. Epilogue - It Was Fun

A/N: Finally, the last chapter. I had lots of doubts while translating this fic to english, but i hope it's not as terrible as I think it is.

Anyway, thanks for reading, and in special, thank you beautiful people who wrote reviews for my story. It made me really happy!

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I watched that scene for a long time, unable to believe in what I was seeing.

That girl, the one that was always looking sad, the one I had "adopted" as a sister the previous day... She was playing with the other kids, looking like she was having fun.

And she was smiling.

Somewhat dumbfounded, I got a little closer, just to make sure I wasn't mistaking her for other girl, someone that looked just like her...

No, there was no doubt: she was the one, my "little sister".

A feeling of relief spread through my chest: even if I failed to help her, she overcame those bad memories on her own. That girl was a lot stronger than one could think by just looking at her small and frail appearance.

"It looks like you don't need me anymore..." I muttered, and suddenly, I felt a little lonely.

I shook my head briefly. No, rather than lonely, I should be feeling happy for that girl: even if she didn't need me, and even if she couldn't see me, she was smiling happily, and that was all that really mattered.

Finally, I allowed myself to smile: upon seeing her happy, inexplicably, I've also become incredibly happy. I really wish I could spend more time here, close to her, but...

I looked around myself thoughtfully, squeezing the staff in my hand. Maybe, that was the time to leave that place.

With a little sigh, I made my decision.

"Goodbye, little one..." I muttered, looking at that lovely girl one last time "It was fun being your brother."

And then, I called the wind, flying away through the skies. Other cities should be in need of snow days, and I, as always, needed to have some fun.


End file.
